The Canadian Medical Association has recently recommended that private competition be introduced into medicare by allowing physicians to bill patients (or private insurance plans) for services that are covered by medicare, and allowing medicare to purchase covered services from for-profit private facilities.

Those who champion privatization claim these modifications of Canada’s publicly funded health-care system would save money, help eliminate waiting times and possibly even improve the quality of care.

Policy-makers need only look to the United States for the evidence such claims have no merit. The U.S. experience shows that private, for-profit medical insurance and investor-owned medical facilities are a bad deal for the public, and that a health-care system that encourages physicians to behave like private entrepreneurs leads to extravagant costs.

Those who would deny this obvious evidence are either blinded by unshakable faith in market ideology or are biased by their interests in businesses that profit from the privatization of health care.

Read more at globeandmail.com.

While events have a different flavour in each community – depending on local co-organizing groups, most will feature a public forum. Discussion will include a brief overview of the benefits and costs of building a child care system in BC, and the economic and social benefits other countries and provinces are realizing from investing in universal child care systems. Speakers include Morna Ballantyne, from the national Code Blue for Child Care campaign, a representative from the Coalition of Child Care Advocates of BC, and local child care representatives. Union members are urged to attend and speak out.

• VERNON - Tuesday May 15 11am-1:30pm
• Community Action Forum - Child Care Crisis
• Schubert Centre
• Info: Leigha Horsfield 545-5705 or Lynne Reside 558-9963

• CASTLEGAR - Thursday May 17, 7pm
• Community Child Care Forum
• Castlegar Recreation & Aquatic Centre, Selkirk Room, 2102 6th Ave.
• Info: 354-4808 or toll-free 1-800-667-1061

• PRINCE RUPERT - Wednesday May 23
• Morning tour - child care centres
• Lunch Forum - guest speakers & action discussion
• Community Child Care Dinner – 6:30pm
• Info: 622-2298

• RICHMOND - Friday May 25, 4-4:30pm
• Tour Wrap – guest speakers & slide show
• Early Childhood Educators of BC conference ‘Honouring Childhood’
• Best Western Richmond Hotel and Convention Centre
• Info: 604-291-9611

The British Invasion - Would UK-style changes to our health care system benefit patients? Or corporations?

A Public health care forum, supporting positive, public solutions to make Medicare stronger in BC

• Kamloops - Tuesday, May 15: 7pm-9pm
• Thompson River University Alumni Theatre, Clock Tower Building, Kamloops
• Featuring: Jacky Davis, London doctor and founding member of Keep NHS Public; Will McMartin, Political commentator & contributor to The Tyee; and Marlene Anderson Positive Action Toward a Caring Health System

• Vancouver - Thursday, May 17: 7pm-9pm
• Croatian Cultural Centre, 3250 Commercial Drive, Auditorium 2
• Featuring: Jacky Davis, London doctor and founding member of Keep NHS Public; Will McMartin, Political commentator & contributor to The Tyee

• S.O.S Medicare 2: Looking Forward
• May 3-4, 2007 in Regina at the Queensbury Convention Centre

This is a two day national conference sponsored in part by the Canadian Health Coalition and the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. The conference is open to the general public and will have representation from a wide spectrum of sectors including community, health care, labour, and anti-poverty.

If you are active in advancing public health care issues and are interested in attending this conference, please send an e-mail to me at sinclak@psac.com.  Include in the e-mail your name, local, PSAC membership #, your activities and involvement in public health care issues or organizations, and your interest in attending this conference. As registration in the conference is very brisk, please send any interest as soon as possible.

In Solidarity, Kay, REVP PSAC B.C.

At the meetings, health analysts will expose the commercial interests behind the latest attacks on Medicare and Canadians will have an opportunity to discuss better ways to strengthen the system.A week of action is being held from November 13 to 18 when Canadians will be encouraged to pressure their politicians. “The public system is under renewed attack, with the federal government not enforcing the Canada Health Act and some provinces aggressively pushing for-profit, two-tier health services,” says CHC chair Kathleen Connors.

PSAC member are encouraged to attend the town hall meeting being held in their area and to participate in the week-long lobby of politicians. Call or meet with your MP and show your support for public health care.

Town hall meetings in BC:

• Vancouver, Wednesday, Nov 15 (location TBA)
• Courtenay/Comox, Thursday, Nov 16 (location TBA)
• Port Alberni, Friday, Nov 17 TBC (location TBA)
• (BC Federation of Labour Convention, Vancouver, Nov 27)
• (BC NDP convention, Vancouver, Nov 25)
• (CEP convention, Vancouver, Oct 15-19)

More information:

• The business case for public health care (fact sheet .pdf)
  
• P3s: private gain, public cost (fact sheet .pdf)
• visit www.healthcoalition.ca

We are standing up to defend, expand and improve public health care and we invite all Canadians to join us.

Join us as we stand up to propose alternatives such as homecare and a national pharmacare plan. Join us as we re-double our efforts to oppose further privatization through the growth of private insurance, private clinics or other for-profit forces. Join us as we advocate innovation and improvement within the public system.

We refuse to let any government dismantle this country’s most cherished social program.

We will make our voices heard whenever and wherever politicians and private forces gather to undermine our country’s best expression of democracy.

We commit to stand up for Canada’s public health care system by:

• Campaigning daily to monitor, expose and challenge every step taken that would weaken our public health care system;
• Working together to develop a national campaign to make public health care a major issue leading up to the next federal and provincial elections;
• Reaching out to engage our own members, youth, seniors, faith groups, anti-poverty groups, new Canadians, women’s groups, aboriginal peoples and others in the fight to save public health care; and
• Working through the Canadian Health Coalition, provincial health coalitions and with our allies in Quebec.

Signed by:
Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions (CFNU)
Canadian Health Coalition (CHC)
Canadian Labour Congress (CLC)
Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE)
Canadian Union Retirees Congress (CURC)
Communication, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada (CEP)
Council of Canadians
National Automobile, Aerospace, Transportation and General Workers Union of Canada (CAW)
National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE)
Ontario Health Coalition (OHC)
Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC)
Service Employees International Union (SEIU)
United Steelworkers

The Save St. Paul’s Coalition needs our help.

The Coalition is trying to set up a meeting with the Health Minister for the end of March and need your signatures on their petition to help make that happen. The letter they have sent the Minister is attached.

Please visit their website, at www.stpauls.wera.bc.ca and if you haven’t already signed their petition, please do.

The Vancouver and District Labour Council is already on record as supporting the work to save St.Paul’s and Mt. St. Joseph’s Hospitals from being closed or moved by the Campbell Liberals and supports the Save St.Paul’s Coalition, in their fight to do the same.

In solidarity, The Vancouver and District Labour Council